Executing applications in conjunction with other devices

ABSTRACT

A method and electronic device for executing application concurrently with other devices are provided. An address of an external electronic device and a location of an application is obtained. A connection is established with a device using a short-range communication protocol. The application is obtained and executed in conjunction with the device.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a Continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.15/449,352 filed on Mar. 3, 2017 which is a Continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 14/475,079 filed on Sep. 2, 2014 and assigned U.S.Pat. No. 9,596,561 issued on Mar. 14, 2017 which claims the benefitunder 35 U.S.C. § 119(a) of a Korean patent application filed in theKorean Intellectual Property Office on Sep. 3, 2013 and assigned SerialNo. 10-2013-0105772, the contents of which are herein incorporated byreference.

BACKGROUND 1. Field of the Disclosure

Various examples of the present disclosure relate to a method forworking in conjunction with among electronic devices and electronicdevices thereof.

2. Description of the Related Art

Short-range wireless communication heretofore may support real-timecommunication between electronic devices without needing complexelectrical wiring therebetween. Short-range wireless communication maybe convenient when signal exchange is needed between electronic deviceslocated within a short distance of each other, such as in a house or anoffice. Such communication may be carried out without going through anetwork relay device, such as a base station, which may be located faraway from the devices themselves. Thus, short range wirelesscommunication may relieve the work load imposed on network relaydevices.

Short-range wireless communication makes high-speed data transmissionpossible with very little delay; thus, short range communication iscommonly used in, for example, mobile devices (e.g., portable phones,tablets, etc.). For example, short-range wireless communication is nowused to provide many functions on mobile devices (e.g., telephony, audioplayback, etc.) through an accessory (e.g., a headset and an earphone)which connects with the mobile device using short-range communicationprotocols, such as Blue Tooth.

SUMMARY

There is a need a solution for working in conjunction with amongelectronic devices and electronic devices thereof.

In view of the forgoing problems, an electronic device is provided. Theelectronic device may include at least one processor to: obtain anaddress of an external electronic device and a location of anapplication, the address and the location being obtained using a firstshort-range communication protocol; establish a connection with theexternal device using a second short-range communication protocol andthe address of the external electronic device; obtain the applicationfrom the location of the application; and execute the application inconjunction with the external electronic device using the secondshort-range communication protocol.

In another aspect, disclosed herein is a method that may include:obtaining an address of a second electronic device and a location of anapplication, the address and the location being obtained using a firstshort-range communication protocol; establishing a connection with thesecond electronic device using a second short-range communicationprotocol and the address of the second electronic device; obtaining theapplication from the location of the application; and executing theapplication in conjunction with the second electronic device using thesecond short-range communication protocol.

In a further aspect, disclosed herein is a non-transitorycomputer-readable medium with instructions stored therein which uponexecution instructs at least one processor to: obtain, by a firstelectronic device, an address of a second electronic device and alocation of an application, the address and the location being obtainedusing a first short-range communication protocol; establish a connectionwith the second electronic device using a second short-rangecommunication protocol and the address of the second electronic device;obtain the application from the location of the application; and executethe application in conjunction with the second electronic device usingthe second short-range communication protocol.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above features and advantages of the present disclosure will becomemore apparent from the following detailed description when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1A and FIG. 1B illustrate an example short-range communicationprotocol system in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example electronic device inaccordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an example interworking module ofan electronic device in accordance with aspects of the presentdisclosure;

FIG. 4 is a ladder diagram illustrating an example process in accordancewith aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example installation package inaccordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a ladder diagram illustrating an example process of installingan application in accordance with aspects of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a flowchart illustrating an example method in accordance withaspects of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example of hardware inaccordance with aspects of the present disclosure.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Various modifications may be made to the examples provided herein. Whilespecific examples are described in the detailed description andaccompanying drawings, it is understood that these examples do not limitthe present disclosure as defined by the appended claims. Therefore, itis understood that the examples described herein also includemodifications, equivalents, or alternatives within the spirit and scopeof the present disclosure. In the drawings, like reference numerals areused for like elements.

Expressions such as “comprise”, “include”, “may comprise”, “may include”and the like indicate a disclosed function, operation, element and thelike, but do not limit the disclosed function, operation, or element tojust one function, operation, or element. Also, in the presentdisclosure, it should be understood that terms such as “comprise”,“include”, “have” and the like designate the existence of a featurestated in the specification, a numeral, a step, an operation, anelement, a component, or a combination thereof, and do not exclude theexistence of one or more other features, numerals, steps, operations,elements, components, or combinations thereof.

In the present disclosure, expressions such as “or” and the like includeany and all combinations of words enumerated together. For example, “Aor B” may include “A”, or may include “B”, or may include all of “A” and“B”.

In the present disclosure, the expressions such as “first”, “second”, or“third” and the like may modify various elements of the presentdisclosure, but do not limit the corresponding elements. For example,the expressions do not limit the order of the elements or the importancethereof. The expressions may be used to distinguish one element fromanother element. For example, a first user device and a second userdevice are all user devices and represent different user devices. Forexample, a first element may be named as a second element withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure.Furthermore, even a second element may be named a first element.

When it is mentioned that one element is “connected” or “accessed” toanother element, it should be understood that the one element may bedirectly connected or accessed to another element or that a thirdelement may also exist in between the two elements. In contrast, when itis mentioned that one element is “directly connected” or “directlyaccessed” to another element, it should be understood that the thirdelement does not exist between the two elements.

Terms used in the present disclosure are merely used for describingspecific examples and do not limit the scope of the present disclosure.Expressions of a singular number includes the expression of a pluralnumber, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

Unless defined otherwise, all terms used herein, including technologicalor scientific terms, have the same meaning as being generally understoodby a person of ordinary skill in the art. Terms as defined in adictionary should be interpreted as having meanings consistent with thecontext of the related technology and should not be construed as havingideal or excessively formal meanings unless defined clearly in thepresent disclosure.

In accordance with aspects of the present disclosure, an electronicdevice may be a device that includes telecommunication. For example, theelectronic device may include, but are not limited to, at least one of asmart phone, a tablet Personal Computer (PC), a mobile phone, a videophone, an electronic book (e-book) reader, a desktop PC, a laptop PC, anetbook computer, a Personal Digital Assistant (PDA), a Portable MediaPlayer (PMP), an MPEG Audio Layer 3 (MP3) player, a mobile medicalinstrument, a camera, and a wearable device (e.g., a Head-MountedDisplay (HMD) such as electronic glasses, electronic clothes, anelectronic bracelet, an electronic necklace, an appcessory, or a smartwatch).

In one example, the electronic device may be a smart home applianceequipped with telecommunication. The smart home appliance, for example,the electronic device may include, but are not limited to, at least oneof a television, a Digital Video Disk (DVD) player, an audio system, arefrigerator, an air conditioner, a cleaner, an oven, a microwave, awashing machine, an air cleaner, a set-top box, a TV box (for example,Samsung HomeSync™, Apple TV™, or Google TV™), a game console, anelectronic dictionary, an electronic locking system, a camcorder, and anelectronic frame.

In another example, the electronic device may include at least one of avariety of medical instruments (e.g., Magnetic Resonance Angiography(MRA), Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), Computerized Tomography (CT), asmayning machine, an ultrasound machine and the like), a navigationdevice, a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver, an Event DataRecorder (EDR), a Flight Data Recorder (FDR), a car infotainment device,an electronic equipment for ship (e.g., a navigation device for ship, agyrocompass and the like), avionics, a security instrument, and anindustrial or household robot.

In a further example, the electronic device may include at least one offurniture or part of a building/structure including a telecommunicationfunction, an electronic board, an electronic signature receiving device,a projector, and various metering instruments (e.g., tap water,electricity, gas, radio wave and the like). The electronic device inaccordance with the present disclosure may be one or a combination ofmore of the aforementioned various devices. Also, it is apparent tothose skilled in the art that the electronic device in accordance withthe present disclosure is not limited to the aforementioned instruments.

FIGS. 1A and 1B illustrate an example short-range communication protocolsystem. Referring to FIG. 1A, the short-range communication protocolsystem 100 may include a first electronic device 110 (e.g., a mainelectronic device), a second electronic device 120 (e.g., a subelectronic device), and a server 130 (e.g., a host). The firstelectronic device 110 may be, for example, a mobile device such as aportable phone or a tablet. The first electronic device 110 may obtain,for example, an address (e.g., a Media Access Control (MAC) address) ofthe second electronic device 120 through a first short-rangecommunication protocol 113 (e.g., Near Field Communication (NFC)). Inone example, the first short-range communication protocol 113 may be acommunication protocol that supports recognition of a counterpartelectronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 120). Forinstance, the protocol may support recognition of the counterpart deviceby using a simple operation such as tagging by the first electronicdevice 110 or sensing by the first electronic device 110 withoutseparate authentication by the first electronic device 110. The firstelectronic device may receive specific information stored in thecounterpart electronic device from the counterpart electronic deviceitself. For example, the first short-range communication protocol 113may follow various standards such as NFC, Radio Frequency IDentification(RFID), audio synchronization, Electric Field Communication (EFC), HumanBody Communication (HBC), Visible Light Communication (VLC) and thelike, and is not limited to a specific communication protocol.

In the example of FIG. 1A, the counterpart electronic device of thefirst short-range communication protocol 113 is the second electronicdevice 120, but it is understood that this is merely illustrative. Thecounterpart electronic device of the first short-range communicationprotocol 113 may be, for example, an electronic device (e.g., electronicclothes or an electronic bracelet) of a type different from those shownin FIGS. 1A-B, or another entity of the same type as that of the firstelectronic device 110, or other examples as well.

The first electronic device 110 may, for example, establish a connectionwith the second electronic device 120 using a second short-rangecommunication protocol 116 and the address of the second electronicdevice 120. In one example, the second short-range communicationprotocol 116 may be, for example, a communication protocol that supportsa reliable communication channel, and that supports continuous exchangeof information for synchronization of an application using thecommunication channel. For example, the second short-range communicationprotocol 116 may follow various standards such as Bluetooth (BT),Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), Wireless Fidelity (WiFi), WiFi-direct,Wireless Giga alliance (WiGig), Ultra WideBand (UWB), Zigbee, and thelike, and is not limited to a specific communication protocol.

In another example, the first electronic device 110 may generateauthentication data for working in conjunction with the secondelectronic device 120, and authenticate the second electronic device 120based on the generated authentication data. The authentication data ofthe present example may include one or more characters. Theauthentication data may be, for example, at least one number, at leastone alphabet, at least one letter, at least one symbol, or a combinationof at least two or more of the foregoing.

The authentication data generated by the first electronic device 110 maybe, for example, provided to a user through an input/output device(e.g., a display) functionally connected with the first electronicdevice 110. If it is determined that the authentication data provided tothe user through the first electronic device 110 is the same asauthentication data input through the second electronic device 120, thefirst electronic device 110 may authenticate the second electronicdevice 120 as an electronic device that will work in conjunction withthe first electronic device 110. In another example, the inputauthentication data may be input manually by the user of the firstelectronic device 110 or other users (e.g., a friend, a family and thelike) to an input/output device (e.g., a touch screen) of the secondelectronic device 120.

The first electronic device 110 may, for example, obtain a location(e.g., a Uniform Resource Locator (URL)) of an application through thefirst short-range communication protocol 113 (e.g., NFC) with the secondelectronic device 120. In another example, the first electronic device110 may be provided with the application from an external source (e.g.,the server 130) corresponding to the location information of theapplication. The first electronic device 110 may, for example, work inconjunction with the second electronic device 120 through a secondshort-range communication protocol 116 (e.g., BT), and execute theprovided application.

In one example, the first electronic device 110 and the secondelectronic device 120 each may include a momentum measurement sensor(e.g., an acceleration sensor, a gyro sensor, a geomagnetic sensor, andthe like). In this instance, at least one of the first electronic device110 and the second electronic device 120 may measure the momentum of arespective device and transmit the measured momentum to the counterpartyelectronic device. The first electronic device 110 and the secondelectronic device 120 may share the momentum information with eachother. The shared momentum information may be presented by way of avisual or audible effect to a user through a first application executedin the first electronic device 110 or a second application executed inassociation with the first application in the second electronic device120. As noted above, the second application executed in association withthe first application may be provided from the first electronic device110 or the external source (i.e., the server 130).

In one example, the second electronic device 120 may receive anotification of a notification event (e.g., call incoming) occurring inassociation with a first application (e.g., a telephony application) ofthe first electronic device 110, and execute a second application (e.g.,a telephony application) corresponding to the notification event in thesecond electronic device 120. The second electronic device 120 may bethe same (e.g., the same type of) device as the first electronic device110 or a different (e.g., a different type of) device. The secondelectronic device 120 may be, for example, a sub electronic devicecapable of working in conjunction with the first electronic device 110and performing at least some functions of the first electronic device110 (e.g., a notification service, a telephony service, an e-mail ormessage (e.g., a message transmitted/received through a Short MessageService (SMS), a Multimedia Message Service (MMS), a Social NetworkingService (SNS), an Instant Message (IM) service, and the like) checkservice, or a biological data sensing service including momentummeasurement). The second electronic device 120 may be, for example, awearable device capable of being located at a short distance from thefirst electronic device 110 and directly worn by a user's body, such asa smart watch, a Head-Mounted Device (HMD) such as electronic glasses,electronic clothing, an electronic bracelet, an electronic necklace, anaccessory, and the like.

The second electronic device 120 may, for example, transmit/receive datarequired for working in conjunction with or in synchronization with thefirst electronic device 110, through the second short-rangecommunication protocol 116 with the first electronic device 110. In oneexample, the second electronic device 120 may receive authenticationdata for working in conjunction with the first electronic device 110,through the second short-range communication protocol 116 from the firstelectronic device 110. The second electronic device 120 may work inconjunction with an application installed in the first electronic device110 and receive an installation file of a sub application that will beexecuted in the second electronic device 120, from the first electronicdevice 110 through the second short-range communication protocol 116.The second electronic device 120 may report the installation ornon-installation of the sub application executed in the secondelectronic device 120, an operation state thereof, the execution resultthereof and the like, to the first electronic device 110 through thesecond short-range communication protocol 116. In a further example, thesecond electronic device 120 may receive synchronization information ofthe first electronic device 110 from the first electronic device 110through the second short-range communication protocol 116, and may sharean operation state of the application executed in the first electronicdevice 110, the execution result thereof, and the like with the firstelectronic device 110.

In addition, in accordance with the example illustrated in FIG. 1A, thesecond electronic device 120 may, for example, provide addressinformation (e.g., a MAC address) of the second electronic device 120and location information (e.g., a URL) of an application, to the firstelectronic device 110 through the first short-range communicationprotocol 113. In one example, the second electronic device 120 mayinclude a communication tag 140 (e.g., an NFC tag) for the firstshort-range communication protocol 113. The communication tag 140 mayinclude, for example, a memory storing at least one of the addressinformation of the second electronic device 120 and the locationinformation of the application.

The server 130 may be, for example, a device accessible by the firstelectronic device 110 through a network 105 (e.g., the Internet), andmay store an application that works in conjunction with the firstelectronic device 110 and the second electronic device 120. The server130 may be, for example, a file server, a content provider, anapplication market, or an application store. The location of theapplication obtained by first electronic device 110 may be an address ofserver 130.

When server 130 receives an access request from first electronic device110, the server 130 may provide the application to the first electronicdevice 110 in response to the access request. For example, the server130 may transmit an installation file of the application to the firstelectronic device 110. In turn, the first electronic device 110 mayexecute the installation file of the application and install theapplication.

Also, the server 130 may transmit to the first electronic device 110 aninstallation file of a sub application that will work in conjunctionwith the application. The sub application may be executed in the secondelectronic device 120. In this instance, the first electronic device 110may transmit the installation file of the sub application to the secondelectronic device 120. In turn, the second electronic device 120 mayexecute the installation file of the sub application and install the subapplication. In a further example, if the server 130 receives anapproval from the first electronic device 110, the server 130 maytransmit the sub application directly to the second electronic device120 through the network 105.

Referring now to FIG. 1B, the short-range communication protocol system100 may further include a third electronic device 150 in addition to thefirst electronic device 110, the second electronic device 120, and theserver 130 which are the elements illustrated in FIG. 1A. The thirdelectronic device 150 may, for example, function as a counterpartelectronic device of the first short-range communication protocol 113for the first electronic device 110. The third electronic device 150may, for example, provide address information (e.g., a MAC address) ofthe second electronic device 120 and location information (e.g., a URL)of an application to the first electronic device 110, through the firstshort-range communication protocol 113. In one example, the thirdelectronic device 150 may include a communication tag 140 (e.g., an NFCtag) for the first short-range communication protocol 113. Thecommunication tag 140 may include, for example, a memory storing atleast one of the address information of the second electronic device 120and the location information of the application.

The third electronic device 150 may be the same (e.g., the same type of)device as the first electronic device 110 or the second electronicdevice 120 or a different (e.g., a different type of) device. In oneexample, the third electronic device 150 may be a peripheral device(e.g., a docking station, an electric charger and the like) having astructure physically attachable or detachable from the first electronicdevice 110 or the second electronic device 120. Alternatively, the thirdelectronic device 150 may, for example, perform a partial function of atleast one of the first electronic device 110 and the second electronicdevice 120, or supply a power source to the at least one of the firstelectronic device 110 and the second electronic device 120 through awired/wireless connection with the at least one of the first electronicdevice 110 and the second electronic device 120.

Referring now to FIG. 2, an example electronic device 200 is shown. Theelectronic device 200 may be, for example, a first electronic device 110illustrated in FIG. 1. Electronic device 200 may include a bus 210, aprocessor 220, a memory 230, an input/output interface 240, a display250, a communication interface 260, and an interworking module 270.

The bus 210 may be a circuit connecting the aforementioned elements witheach other, and forwarding a communication signal (e.g., a controlmessage) between the aforementioned elements.

The processor 220 may, for example, receive instructions from theaforementioned other elements (e.g., the memory 230, the input/outputinterface 240, the display 250, the communication interface 260, theinterworking module 270, and the like) through the bus 210, decipher thereceived instructions, and execute the deciphered instructions.

The memory 230 may store instructions or data which are received fromthe processor 220 or the other elements (e.g., the input/outputinterface 240, the display 250, the communication interface 260, theinterworking module 270, and the like) or are generated by the processor220 or the other elements. The memory 230 may, for example, includeprogramming modules such as a kernel 231, a middleware 232, anApplication Programming Interface (API) 233, an application 234 or thelike. The aforementioned respective programming modules may be composedof software, firmware, hardware or a combination of at least two or moreof them.

The kernel 231 may control or manage system resources (e.g., the bus210, the processor 220, the memory 230, the interworking module 270, andthe like) used for executing operations or functions implemented in theremnant other programming modules, for example, the middleware 232, theAPI 233, and the application 234. Also, the kernel 231 may provide aninterface of enabling the middleware 232, the API 233, or theapplication 234 to access and control or manage an individual element ofthe electronic device 200.

The middleware 232 may perform a relay role such that the API 233 or theapplication 234 may communicate with the kernel 231 and exchange datawith the kernel 231. Also, in relation with work requests received fromthe (plurality of) applications 234, the middleware 232 may, forexample, perform a control (e.g., scheduling or load balancing) of thework request using a method of allotting the order of priority for usingthe system resource (e.g., the bus 210, the processor 220, the memory230, the interworking module 270 or the like) of the electronic device200 to at least one application among the (plurality of) applications234.

The API 233, which is an interface for enabling the application 234 tocontrol a function provided in the kernel 231 or the middleware 232, mayinclude, for example, at least one interface or function (e.g., aninstruction) for file control, window control, image processing,character control or the like.

The input/output interface 240 may receive an input of an instruction ordata from a user and deliver the received instruction or data to theprocessor 220, the memory 230, the interworking module 270, and the likethrough the bus 210. Also, the input/output interface 240 may outputaudio information received from the interworking module 270, the memory230 or the communication interface 260 through the bus 210.

The display 250 may display an image, a picture, data or the like to auser. The communication interface 260 may connect communication betweenthe electronic device 200 and one or more other electronic devices 202.The communication interface 260 may support a predetermined short-rangecommunication protocol (e.g., WiFi, WiFi-direct, WiGig, BT, BLE, Zigbee,UWB, NFC, RFID, audio synchronization, EFC, HBC, VLC and the like) orpredetermined network communication 262 (e.g., the Internet, a LocalArea Network (LAN), a Wide Area Network (WAN), a telecommunicationnetwork, a cellular network, a satellite network, a Plain Old TelephoneSystem (POTS) or the like). The electronic devices 202 and 204 each maybe the same (e.g., same type of) device as the electronic device 200 orbe a different (e.g., different type of) device. Server 264 may be ahost computer for storing applications and me be any type of device orcomputer.

The interworking module 270 may process at least part of digitalinformation obtained from the other elements (e.g., the processor 220,the memory 230, the input/output interface 240, the communicationinterface 260, and the like), and provide the digital information to auser in various methods. The interworking module 270 may, for example,control at least some functions of the electronic device 200 by usingthe processor 220 such that the electronic device 200 works inconjunction with other electronic devices. Additional details regardinginterworking module 270 is discussed below with reference to FIGS. 3-7.

FIG. 3 illustrates an example interworking module 300 of an electronicdevice (e.g., the first electronic device 110) in accordance withaspects of the present disclosure. The interworking module 300 may be,for example, the interworking module 270 illustrated in FIG. 2.Referring to FIG. 3, the interworking module 300 may include anacquisition module 310, a connection module 320, a reception module 330,and an interworking control module 340.

The acquisition module 310 may, for example, obtain telecommunicationaddress information of a sub electronic device (e.g., the secondelectronic device 120) and location information of one or moreapplications to be executed in conjunction with at least the subelectronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 120). The addressand location may be obtained using first short-range communicationprotocol 113 with the external device (e.g., the second electronicdevice 120 or the third electronic device 150). In one example, theacquisition module 310 may obtain address information (e.g., a MACaddress) of the sub electronic device (e.g., the second electronicdevice 120) and location information (e.g., a URL) of at least anapplication, from the sub electronic device (e.g., the second electronicdevice 120), the sub electronic device being a counterpart device of thefirst short-range communication protocol (e.g., 113 of FIG. 1). In oneexample, the acquisition module 310 may obtain the address information(e.g., the MAC address) of the sub electronic device (e.g., the secondelectronic device 120) and the location information (e.g., the URL) ofat least the application, from some other electronic device (e.g., thethird electronic device 150), the other electronic device being acounterpart device of the first short-range communication protocol(e.g., 113 of FIG. 1).

The connection module 320 may, for example, connect the secondshort-range communication protocol (e.g., 116 of FIG. 1) with the subelectronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 120), using thetelecommunication address information of the sub electronic device(e.g., the second electronic device 120). In one example, the connectionmodule 320 may authenticate the sub electronic device (e.g., the secondelectronic device 120), as a counterpart electronic device that willgenerate authentication data. The authentication data may allow theelectronic device (e.g., the first electronic device 110) to work inconjunction with the sub electronic device (e.g. the second electronicdevice 120). For example, the connection module 320 may display theauthentication data to a user, through a display functionally connectedwith the electronic device (e.g., the first electronic device 110).Also, the connection module 320 may present a request of inputting theauthentication data through the sub electronic device (e.g., the secondelectronic device 120), to the user by using a visual or audible effect.

If the generated authentication data and the authentication data inputin the sub electronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 120)are consistent with each other, for example, the connection module 320may authenticate the sub electronic device (e.g., the second electronicdevice 120). Comparing the authentication data generated in theconnection module 320 and the authentication data input through the subelectronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 120) may beperformed by connection module 320 or some other module (e.g., theinterworking control module 340) functionally connected with theconnection module 320, or may be performed in the sub electronic device(e.g., the second electronic device 120).

In one example, the first electronic device 110 and the secondelectronic device 120 may each include a biological recognition sensor(e.g., a fingerprint recognition sensor, an iris recognition sensor, avoice recognition sensor, a face recognition sensor and the like). Inthis instance, the second electronic device 120 may receive an input ofuser's biological information (e.g., fingerprint information, irisinformation, voice information, face information or the like) from auser and transmit the user's biological information to the firstelectronic device 110. The first electronic device 110 (e.g., theconnection module 320) may compare the received user's biologicalinformation with the biological information stored (e.g., previouslyinputted and stored, or received from the server 130) in the firstelectronic device 110. If they match, the first electronic device 110may authenticate a user as an authorized user of the second electronicdevice 120. The biological information may be transmitted together withthe authentication data comparison result or may be transmittedseparately (e.g., before or after the authentication data transmission).If transmitted concurrently, the biological information may betransmitted as separate data distinguishable from the authenticationdata comparison result or may be transmitted in a form in which at leastpart of the biological information is coupled with at least part of theauthentication data comparison result. For example, the secondelectronic device 120 may code at least the part of the biologicalinformation using a hash function, and couple the coded biologicalinformation to be interleaved with at least part of the authenticationdata, and transmit the interleaving result to the first electronicdevice 110. However, it is understood that the foregoing are merelyexamples and that many forms of transmission may be implemented. Forexample, the first electronic device 110 may receive an input of user'sbiological information (e.g., fingerprint information, iris information,voice information, face information and the like) from a user andtransmit the biological information to the second electronic device 120;in turn, the second electronic device 120 may compare the receiveduser's biological information with biological information existing(e.g., previously inputted and stored, or received from the server 130)in the second electronic device 120.

The reception module 330 may be, for example, provided with anapplication from an external server (e.g., the server 130). The externalserver may be the location of the application. In one example, thereception module 330 may receive an installation file of the applicationfrom the external server (e.g., the server 130), and execute theinstallation file of the application, and install the application.Alternatively, the installation file of the application may includeinstallation files of not only an application to be executed inconjunction with interworking control module 340 described later butalso a sub application that will work in conjunction with thisapplication and be executed in the sub electronic device (e.g., thesecond electronic device 120).

The interworking control module 340 may, for example, work inconjunction with the sub electronic device (e.g., the second electronicdevice 120) through the second short-range communication protocol (e.g.,116 of FIG. 1), and execute an application. The interworking controlmodule 340 may transmit an installation file of a sub application to thesub electronic device (e.g., the second electronic device 120), throughthe second short-range communication protocol (e.g., 116 of FIG. 1). Theinterworking control module 340 may execute a management application andperform at least one of an operation of monitoring an operation state ofanother application installed in the sub electronic device and anoperation of providing a user with a warning message in response to arequest of removal of one or more applications. The managementapplication is discussed further below with reference to FIG. 6.

An electronic device may include at least one processor to obtain anaddress of an external electronic device and a location of anapplication, the address and the location being obtained using a firstshort-range communication protocol; establish a connection with theexternal device using a second short-range communication protocol andthe address of the external electronic device; obtain the applicationfrom the location of the application; and execute the application inconjunction with the external electronic device using the secondshort-range communication protocol. The first short-range communicationprotocol may include at least one of NFC with an external tag, RFID,audio synchronization, EFC, HBC, and VLC. The second short-rangecommunication protocol may include at least one of BT, BLE, Zigbee, UWB,WiFi, WiFi-direct, and WiGig.

In one aspect, at least one processor may obtain the address and thelocation from the external electronic device using the first short-rangecommunication protocol. In another aspect, at least one processor mayobtain the address and the location from some other electronic deviceusing the first short-range communication protocol. In this instance,the other electronic device may be physically attachable and detachablefrom the electronic device or the external electronic device;alternatively, such other device may supply a power source to theelectronic device or the external electronic device.

In yet another aspect, at least one processor may generateauthentication data; display the authentication data on a display of theelectronic device; detect receipt of additional authentication data fromthe external electronic device; and authenticate the external electronicdevice based on a comparison between the generated authentication dataand the additional authentication data.

In another example, at least one processor may detect receipt of aninstallation file of the application from an external server and installthe application. In another aspect at least one processor may detect asub-application installation file in the installation file; and transmitthe sub-application installation file to the external electronic deviceusing the second short-range communication protocol. The sub-applicationinstallation file may include a sub-application that works inconjunction with the application.

In another example, at least one processor may execute a managementapplication included in the application; and perform at least one ofmonitoring an operation state of another application installed in theexternal electronic device and providing a warning message to a user inresponse to a request for removal of the application.

FIG. 4 illustrates an example method 400 of a plurality of electronicdevices (e.g., the first electronic device 110, the second electronicdevice 120, the third electronic device 150, and the server 130) workingin conjunction using a short-range communication protocol (e.g., thefirst short-range communication protocol 113 or the second short-rangecommunication protocol 116).

Referring to FIG. 4, in operation 451, the first electronic device 110(e.g., the acquisition module 310) may recognize a first short-rangecommunication protocol (e.g., 113 of FIG. 1) tag installed in the thirdelectronic device 150 being within a designated (e.g., predefined)distance (e.g., about 10 cm). In operation 452, the first electronicdevice 110 (e.g., the acquisition module 310) may send a firstshort-range communication protocol request to the third electronicdevice 150. In response to the first short-range communication protocolrequest, in operation 453, the third electronic device 150 may transmitaddress information (e.g., a MAC address) of the second electronicdevice 120 and location information (e.g., a URL) of an application tothe first electronic device 110. In operation 454, the location may bethe location of server 130 and first electronic device 110 (e.g., thereception module 330) may gain access to the server 130 in operation454, and send an application provision request to the server 130. Inresponse to the application provision request of operation 454, inoperation 455, the server 130 may provide an application to the firstelectronic device 110.

In operation 456, the first electronic device 110 (e.g., the connectionmodule 320) may, for example, search the second electronic device 120based on the address information obtained in operation 453. In operation457, the second electronic device 120 may send the first electronicdevice 110 a response to the search of operation 456. In operation 458,the first electronic device 110 (e.g., the connection module 320) mayestablish a second short-range communication protocol channel with thesecond electronic device 120.

In operation 459, the first electronic device 110 (e.g., the connectionmodule 320) may generate first authentication data that allows firstelectronic device 110 to work in conjunction with second electronicdevice 120. In operation 460, the first electronic device 110 (e.g. theconnection module 320) may, for example, transmit the firstauthentication data generated in operation 459, to the second electronicdevice 120 through the second short-range communication protocol channelestablished in operation 458. In operation 461, the first electronicdevice 110 (e.g., the connection module 320) may present the firstauthentication data to a user through a display (e.g., 250 of FIG. 2)functionally connected to the first electronic device 110. In oneexample, concurrently with display of the first authentication data, thefirst electronic device 110 (e.g., the connection module 320) maypresent (e.g., display) a prompt to input second authentication data ona display of second electronic device 120.

In operation 462, the second electronic device 120 may, for example,receive an input of the second authentication data from a user. Inoperation 463, the second electronic device 120 may, for example,transmit at least one of the second authentication data and thecomparison result between the first authentication data and the secondauthentication data, to the first electronic device 110 through thesecond short-range communication protocol channel. In one example, acomparison of the first authentication data and the secondauthentication data may be carried out in at least one of the firstelectronic device 110 and the second electronic device 120. In oneexample, the second electronic device 120 may compare the firstauthentication data and the second authentication data and identifywhether both authentication data are consistent with each other. Inanother example, the first electronic device 110 (e.g., the connectionmodule 320) may receive the second authentication data through thesecond short-range communication protocol channel, and compare the firstauthentication data and the second authentication data, and identifywhether both authentication data are consistent with each other.

In operation 464, the first electronic device 110 (e.g., the connectionmodule 320) may, for example, authenticate the second electronic device120 as the device that will work in conjunction with the firstelectronic device 110, based on the comparison between the firstauthentication data and the second authentication data. In operation465, when authentication of the second electronic device 120 issuccessful, in operation 464, the first electronic device 110 may beginworking in conjunction with second electronic device 120 through thesecond short-range communication protocol channel. It is understood thatthe operations shown in FIG. 4 may be performed in a different order orconcurrently and that other operations may be added or omitted.

Referring to FIG. 5, an example installation package file 500 is shown.Installation package file 500 of the application may include one or morefolders such as a first folder 510, a second folder 520, and a thirdfolder 530, and one or more files such as a first file 540, a secondfile 550, and a third file 560.

The first folder 510 may be, for example, a folder storing dataassociated with an external resource of an application, or a softwareprogram. The first folder 510 may be, for example, an “asset” folder ofan Application PacKage (APK) file of Android operating system. In afurther example, an installation package file of an application forworking in conjunction with another device (e.g., the second electronicdevice 120) may include an installation package file 515 of a subapplication that will work in conjunction with the application and beexecuted in another device (e.g., the second electronic device 120). Inanother example, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the installation package file515 of the sub application may be located in the first folder 510 of theinstallation package file 500 of the application. However, it isunderstood that FIG. 5 is merely illustrative and that the installationpackage file 515 of the sub application may be located in another folderof the installation package file 500 or some other location.

The second folder 520 may, for example, store metadata of theapplication itself. The metadata may include content for generating adigital signature through a certificate of authentication. The secondfolder 520 may be, for example, a “META_INF” folder of the APK file ofan Android operating system. The third folder 530 may be, for example, afolder storing data regarding an internal resource of the application ora software program. The third folder 530 may be, for example, a“META-INF” folder of the APK file of the Android operating system.

The first file 540 is, for example, a file storing basic setupinformation of the application. The first file 540 may be, for example,“AndroidManifest.xml” of an Android operating system. The second file550 may be, for example, a file generated by compiling a source code ofthe application and may include information of classes associated withan operation of the application. The second file 550 may be, forexample, “classes.dex” of an Android operating system. The third file560 may include, for example, resources previously compiled beforeexecution of the application. The third file 560 may be, for example,“resources.arsc” of an Android operating system.

Referring to FIG. 6, an example method 600 of installing an applicationis shown. At operation 641, the first electronic device 110 (e.g., thereception module 330) may request an installation package file (e.g.,installation package file 500) to the server 130. In response to therequest of operation 641, in operation 642, the server 130 may transmitthe application installation file to the first electronic device 110. Inone example, the application installation file may include a subapplication installation file (e.g., the sub application installationfile 515).

In operation 643, the first electronic device 110 (e.g., theinterworking control module 340) may, for example, extract the subapplication installation file (e.g., the sub application installationfile 515) from the application installation file (e.g., installationpackage file 500). In operation 644, the first electronic device 110(e.g., the interworking control module 340) may, for example, transmitthe sub application installation file extracted in operation 643 to thesecond electronic device 120 through the second short-rangecommunication protocol (e.g., 116 of FIG. 1). In operation 645, thefirst electronic device 110 (e.g., the interworking control module 340)may, for example, install the application from the installation filereceived at operation 642. In operation 646, the second electronicdevice 120 may install the sub application from the sub applicationinstallation file. In operation 647, the second electronic device 120may notify the first electronic device 110 that the installation of thesub application has been completed using the second short-rangecommunication protocol (e.g., 116 of FIG. 1). At operation 648, thefirst electronic device 110 may update the management application. Atoperation 649, the application installed in first electronic device 110may begin working in conjunction with the sub application installed insecond electronic device 120. As with the example of FIG. 4, theoperations in FIG. 6 may be performed in a different order orconcurrently and operations may be added or omitted.

In one example, one or more applications that the first electronicdevice 110 receives from the server 130 may include a managementapplication. The management application may perform a function ofstoring a list of sub applications installed in another device (e.g.,the second electronic device 120) that is working in conjunction withthe first electronic device 110. The management application may alsomonitoring the operation states of the sub applications. In a furtherexample, the management application may update the versions of the subapplications from server 130.

In one example, when the management application receives a request forremoval of an application working in conjunction with a sub application,the management application may display a warning that the subapplication would not operate normally if the application is removedfrom first electronic device 110.

Referring now to FIG. 7, a flowchart illustrating an example method 700is shown. In operation 701, the first electronic device 110 (e.g., theacquisition module 310) may obtain address information of the secondelectronic device 120 and location information of an application. Theapplication may be capable of working in conjunction with at leastsecond electronic device 120. The address of the second electronicdevice 120 and the location information may be obtained from someexternal device (e.g., the second electronic device 120 or the thirdelectronic device 150) using a first short-range communication protocol.In operation 702, the first electronic device 110 (e.g., the connectionmodule 320) may connect with the second electronic device 120 using asecond short-range communication protocol and the address information.In operation 703, the first electronic device 110 (e.g., the receptionmodule 330) may obtain the application from the location, which may bethe external device (e.g., the server 130). In operation 704, the firstelectronic device 110 (e.g., the interworking control module 340) maybegin to execute the application in conjunction with the secondelectronic device 120. The operations shown in FIG. 7 may also beperformed in a different order or concurrently and operations may beadded or omitted. The operations may also be executed using a heuristicmethod.

In another example, a method of working in conjunction with a pluralityof electronic devices may include obtaining an address of a secondelectronic device and a location of an application, the address and thelocation being obtained using a first short-range communicationprotocol; establishing a connection with the second electronic deviceusing a second short-range communication protocol and the address of thesecond electronic device; obtaining the application from the location ofthe application; and executing the application in conjunction with thesecond electronic device using the second short-range communicationprotocol.

In another aspect, obtaining the address of the second electronic deviceand the location of the application may further comprise obtaining theaddress and the location from the second electronic device using thefirst short-range communication protocol. However, the address of thesecond electronic device and the location of the application may furthercomprise obtaining the address and the location from a third electronicdevice different from the first electronic device and the secondelectronic device.

In a further aspect, establishing a connection with the secondelectronic device may further comprise: generating first authenticationdata; displaying the first authentication data on a display of the firstelectronic device; detecting receipt of second authentication data fromthe second electronic device; and authenticating the second electronicdevice based on a comparison between the first authentication data andthe second authentication data.

In yet a further aspect, authenticating the second electronic device mayfurther include transmitting the first authentication data to the secondelectronic device; and detecting, from the second electronic device,receipt of a result of the comparison between the first authenticationdata and the second authentication data.

In a further example, the method may comprise authenticating a user ofthe second electronic device using biological information. The methodmay also comprise: receiving the biological information from the secondelectronic device; and comparing the biological information withbiological information stored in the first electronic device. In anotherexample, at least part of the biological information received from thesecond electronic device is interleaved with at least part of thecomparison between the first authentication data and the secondauthentication data.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example hardware in accordancewith aspects of the present disclosure. The hardware 800 may be, forexample, the electronic device 200 illustrated in FIG. 2. Referring toFIG. 8, the hardware 800 include one or more processors 810, aSubscriber Identification Module (SIM) card 814, a memory 820, acommunication module 830, a sensor module 840, a user input module 850,a display module 860, an interface 870, an audio codec 880, a cameramodule 891, a power management module 895, a battery 896, an indicator897, and a motor 898.

The processor 810 (e.g., the processor 220) may include one or moreApplication Processors (APs) 811 or one or more Communication Processors(CPs) 813. The processor 810 may be, for example, the processor 220illustrated in FIG. 2. Although FIG. 8 illustrates that the AP 811 andthe CP 813 are included within the processor 810, the AP 811 and the CP813 may be included within different IC packages, respectively. In oneexample, the AP 811 and the CP 813 may be included within one ICpackage.

The AP 811 may drive an operating system or an application program andcontrol a plurality of hardware or software elements connected to the AP811, and perform processing and operation of various data includingmultimedia data. The AP 811 may be, for example, implemented as a Systemon Chip (SoC). In another example, the processor 810 may further includea Graphic Processing Unit (GPU) (not shown).

The CP 813 may perform a function of managing a data link and convertinga communication protocol in communication between an electronic device(e.g., the electronic device 200) including the hardware 800 and otherelectronic devices connected through a network. The CP 813 may beimplemented as a SoC, for example. In a further example, the CP 813 mayperform at least part of a multimedia control function. The CP 813 may,for example, perform the distinction and authentication of theelectronic device within a communication network, using a subscriberidentity module (e.g., the SIM card 814). Also, the CP 813 may provideservices such as voice telephony, video telephony, a text message,packet data or the like to a user.

Also, the CP 813 may control data transmission/reception of thecommunication module 830. Although FIG. 8 illustrates the elements suchas the CP 813, the power management module 895, the memory 820 and thelike as elements separate from the AP 811, In one example, the AP 811may be implemented to include at least some (e.g., the CP 813) of theaforementioned elements.

In a further example, the AP 811 or the CP 813 may load to a volatilememory an instruction or data received from a non-volatile memoryconnected to each of the AP 811 and the CP 813 or from at least one ofother elements, and process the loaded instruction or data. Also, the AP811 or the CP 813 may store in the non-volatile memory data receivedfrom at least one of the other elements or generated by at least one ofthe other elements.

The SIM card 814 may be a card implementing the subscriber identitymodule, and may be inserted into a slot provided in a specific locationof the electronic device. The SIM card 814 may include uniqueidentification information (e.g., Integrated Circuit Card ID (ICCID)) orsubscriber information (e.g., International Mobile Subscriber Identity(IMSI)).

The memory 820 may include an internal memory 822 or an external memory824. The memory 820 may be, for example, the memory 230 illustrated inFIG. 2. The internal memory 822 may include, for example, at least oneof a volatile memory (e.g., a Dynamic Random Access Memory (DRAM), aStatic Random Access Memory (SRAM), a Synchronous Dynamic Random AccessMemory (SDRAM) and the like) or a non-volatile memory (e.g., a One TimePROM (OTPROM), a Programmable ROM (PROM), an Erasable Programmable ROM(EPROM), an Electrically Erasable Programmable ROM (EEPROM), a mask ReadOnly Memory (ROM), a flash ROM, a Not AND (NAND) flash memory, a Not OR(NOR) flash memory and the like). In one example, the internal memory822 may take a form of Solid State Drive (SSD). The external memory 824may further include a flash drive, for example, Compact Flash (CF),Secure Digital (SD), Micro Secure Digital (Micro-SD), Mini SecureDigital (Mini-SD), extreme Digital (xD), a memory stick or the like.

The communication module 830 may include a wireless communication module831 or a Radio Frequency (RF) module 834. The communication module 830may be, for example, the communication interface 260 illustrated in FIG.2. The wireless communication module 831 may include, for example, WiFi833, BT 835, GPS 837, and NFC 839. For example, the wirelesscommunication module 831 may provide a wireless communication functionusing radio frequency. Alternatively, the wireless communication module831 may include a network interface (e.g., a LAN card), a modem or thelike for connecting the hardware 800 with a network (e.g., the Internet,a LAN, a WAN, a telecommunication network, a cellular network, asatellite network, a POTS or the like).

The RF module 834 may take charge of transmission/reception of data, forexample, transmission/reception of an RF signal or a called electronicsignal. The RF module 834 may include, though not illustrated, forexample, a transceiver, a Power Amp Module (PAM), a frequency filter, aLow Noise Amplifier (LNA) and the like. Also, the RF module 834 mayfurther include a component for transmitting/receiving anelectromagnetic wave on a free space in a wireless communication, forexample, a conductor, a conductive line and the like.

The sensor module 840 may include, for example, at least one of agesture sensor 840A, a gyro sensor 840B, an air pressure sensor 840C, amagnetic sensor 840D, an acceleration sensor 840E, a grip sensor 840F, aproximity sensor 840G, a Red, Green, Blue (RGB) sensor 840H, abiological sensor 840I, a temperature/humidity sensor 840J, a lightsensor 840K, and a Ultraviolet (UV) sensor 840M. The sensor module 840may measure a physical quantity or sense an activation state of theelectronic device and convert the measured or sensed information into anelectrical signal. Alternatively, the sensor module 840 may include, forexample, an Electronic nose (E-nose) sensor (not shown), anElectromyography (EMG) sensor (not shown), an Electroencephalogram (EEG)sensor (not shown), an Electrocardiogram (ECG) sensor (not shown), afingerprint sensor (not shown) and the like. The sensor module 840 mayfurther include a control circuit for controlling at least one or moresensors provided therein.

The user input module 850 may include a touch panel 852, a (digital) pensensor 854, a key 856, or an ultrasonic input device 858. The user inputmodule 850 may be, for example, the input/output interface 240illustrated in FIG. 2. The touch panel 852 may recognize, for example, atouch input in at least one method among a capacitive method, a pressuresensitive method, an infrared method, and an ultrasonic method. Also,the touch panel 852 may also further include a controller (not shown).In the capacitive method, not only direct touch but also proximityrecognition is possible. The touch panel 852 may also further include atactile layer. In this instance, the touch panel 852 may provide atactile response to a user.

The (digital) pen sensor 854 may be implemented, for example, using thesame or similar method with receiving a user's touch input or a separatesheet for recognition. The key 856 may be, for example, a keypad or atouch key. The ultrasonic input device 858 is a device capable ofconfirming data by sensing a sound wave with a microphone (e.g., amicrophone 888) of the electronic device, and may perform wirelessrecognition through a pen generating an ultrasonic signal. In anotherexample, the hardware 800 may also receive a user input from an externaldevice (e.g., a network, a computer, or a server) connected to thehardware 800 using the communication module 830.

The display module 860 may include a panel 862 or a hologram 864. Thedisplay module 860 may be, for example, the display 250 illustrated inFIG. 2. The panel 862 may be, for example, a Liquid Crystal Display(LCD), an Active-Matrix Organic Light-Emitting Diode (AMOLED), or thelike. The panel 862 may be implemented to be flexible, transparent, orwearable, for example. The panel 862 may be also constructed as onemodule together with the touch panel 852. The hologram 864 may show athree-dimensional image in the air by using interference of light. Inone example, the display module 860 may further include a controlcircuit for controlling the panel 862 or the hologram 864.

The interface 870 may include, for example, a High-Definition MultimediaInterface (HDMI) 872, a Universal Serial Bus (USB) 874, a projector 876,and a D-subminiature (D-sub) 878. Alternatively, the interface 870 mayinclude, for example, Secure Digital/Multi Media Card (SD/MMC) (notshown) and Infrared Data Association (IrDA) (not shown).

The audio codec 880 may convert a voice and an electric signalinteractively. The audio codec 880 may convert, for example, voiceinformation that is inputted or outputted through a speaker 882, areceiver 884, an earphone 886, the microphone 888 and the like.

The camera module 891 is a device capable of taking an image and avideo. In a further example, the camera module 891 may include one ormore image sensors (e.g., a front lens and a rear lens), an Image SignalProcessor (ISP) (not shown), and a flash LED (not shown).

The power management module 895 may manage power of the hardware 800.Though not illustrated, the power management module 895 may include, forexample, a Power Management Integrated Circuit (PMIC), a chargerIntegrated Circuit (IC), and a battery gauge.

The PMIC may be mounted, for example, within an integrated circuit or aSoC semiconductor. A charging method may be divided into wired andwireless. The charger IC may charge a battery, and may prevent theinflow of overvoltage or overcurrent from an electric charger. Inanother example, the charger IC may include a charger IC for at leastone of a wired charging method and a wireless charging method. As thewireless charging method, there are a magnetic resonance method, amagnetic induction method, an electromagnetic method and the like, forexample. The charger IC may be added with additional circuits forwireless charging, for example, a coil loop, a resonance circuit, arectifier circuit and the like.

The battery gauge may measure, for example, a level of the battery 896,a voltage in charging, an electric current, and a temperature. Thebattery 896 may generate electricity and supply a power source. Thebattery 896 may be, for example, a rechargeable cell.

The indicator 897 may display a specific state of the hardware 800 or apart (e.g., the AP 811) thereof, for example, a booting state, a messagestate, a charging state and the like. The motor 898 may convert anelectrical signal into a mechanical vibration.

Though not illustrated, the hardware 800 may include a processing device(e.g., a GPU) for mobile TV support. The processing device for mobile TVsupport may process, for example, standard media data of DigitalMultimedia Broadcasting (DMB), Digital Video Broadcasting (DVB), a mediaflow and the like. The aforementioned elements of the hardware 800 inaccordance with the present disclosure may be constructed by one or morecomponents, and the names of the corresponding elements may be varied inaccordance with the kind of the electronic device. The hardware 800 inaccordance with the present disclosure may include at least one of theaforementioned elements, and may omit some elements or further includeadditional other elements. Also, some of the elements of the hardware800 in accordance with the present disclosure are coupled andconstructed as one entity, thereby being able to identically perform thefunctions of the corresponding elements of before being coupled.

The above-described embodiments of the present disclosure can beimplemented in hardware, firmware or via the execution of software orcomputer code that can be stored in a recording medium such as a CD ROM,a Digital Versatile Disc (DVD), a magnetic tape, a RAM, a floppy disk, ahard disk, or a magneto-optical disk or computer code downloaded over anetwork originally stored on a remote recording medium or anon-transitory computer readable medium and to be stored on a localrecording medium, so that the methods described herein can be renderedvia such software that is stored on the recording medium using a generalpurpose computer, or a special processor or in programmable or dedicatedhardware, such as an ASIC or FPGA. As would be understood in the art,the computer, the processor, microprocessor controller or theprogrammable hardware include memory components, e.g., RAM, ROM, Flash,etc. that may store or receive software or computer code that whenaccessed and executed by the computer, processor or hardware implementthe processing methods described herein. In addition, it would berecognized that when a general purpose computer accesses code forimplementing the processing shown herein, the execution of the codetransforms the general purpose computer into a special purpose computerfor executing the processing shown herein. Any of the functions andsteps provided in the Figures may be implemented in hardware, softwareor a combination of both and may be performed in whole or in part withinthe programmed instructions of a computer. No claim element herein is tobe construed under the provisions of 35 U.S.C. 112, sixth paragraph,unless the element is expressly recited using the phrase “means for”.

In addition, an artisan understands and appreciates that a “processor”or “microprocessor” constitute hardware in the claimed invention. Underthe broadest reasonable interpretation, the appended claims constitutestatutory subject matter in compliance with 35 U.S.C. § 101. Thefunctions and process steps herein may be performed automatically orwholly or partially in response to user command. An activity (includinga step) performed automatically is performed in response to executableinstruction or device operation without user direct initiation of theactivity.

The terms “unit” or “module” referred to herein is to be understood ascomprising hardware such as a processor or microprocessor configured fora certain desired functionality, or a non-transitory medium comprisingmachine executable code, in accordance with statutory subject matterunder 35 U.S.C. § 101 and does not constitute software per se.

Although the disclosure herein has been described with reference toparticular examples, it is to be understood that these examples aremerely illustrative of the principles of the disclosure. It is thereforeto be understood that numerous modifications may be made to the examplesand that other arrangements may be devised without departing from thespirit and scope of the disclosure as defined by the appended claims.Furthermore, while particular processes are shown in a specific order inthe appended drawings, such processes are not limited to any particularorder unless such order is expressly set forth herein; rather, processesmay be performed in a different order or concurrently and steps may beadded or omitted.

What is claimed is:
 1. A portable communication device comprising: afirst communication circuitry to establish a first communicationconnection using a first communication protocol; a second communicationcircuitry to establish a second communication connection using a secondcommunication protocol; a touchscreen display; and a processorconfigured to: obtain an installation file of a specified applicationfrom a server via the first communication connection established usingthe first communication circuitry; install the specified application inthe portable communication device using the installation file; andtransmit at least a portion of the installation file to an externalelectronic device via the second communication connection establishedusing the second communication circuitry, the at least the portion ofthe installation file to be used to install the specified application inthe external electronic device, when the specified application isinstalled, using the at least the portion of the installation file, onthe external electronic device, adding an identifier of the applicationto a list of identifiers of a plurality of applications installed on theportable communication device and the external electronic device; anddisplaying at least one identifier from the list of identifiers.
 2. Theportable communication device of claim 1, wherein the firstcommunication circuitry is configured to establish the firstcommunication connection using a non-short range communication protocolas at least part of the first communication protocol, and wherein thesecond communication circuitry is configured to establish the secondcommunication connection using a short range communication protocol asat least part of the second communication protocol.
 3. The portablecommunication device of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to:identify, a first version of the specified application currentlyinstalled in the portable communication device; obtain, using the firstcommunication circuitry, a update file corresponding to a second versionof the specified application newer than the first version and stored inthe server from the server, the obtaining based at least in part on adetermination that the first version is different from the secondversion; and update the specified application installed in the portablecommunication device from the first version to the second version usingthe update file.
 4. The portable communication device of claim 1,wherein the processor is configured to: perform the installing prior totransmitting the at least the portion of the installation file.
 5. Theportable communication device of claim 1, wherein the processor isconfigured to: transmitting the at least the portion of the installationfile based at least in part on a determination that the portablecommunication device is connected with the external electronic devicevia the second communication connection.
 6. The portable communicationdevice of claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to: identify asmart watch device as at least part of the external electronic device.7. The portable communication device of claim 1, wherein the processoris configured to: receive an indication from the external electronicdevice whether the application is installed on the external electronicdevice or not installed on the external electronic device.
 8. Theportable communication device of claim 1, wherein the processor isconfigured to: display, via the touchscreen display, displaying the atleast one identifier comprises displaying the list of identifiers of theplurality of applications installed on the portable communication deviceand the external electronic device.
 9. The portable communication deviceof claim 1, wherein the processor is configured to: display a list ofidentifiers identifying another plurality of applications that areinstalled on the portable communication device and not installed on theexternal electronic device.
 10. The portable communication device ofclaim 1, wherein the processor is configured to obtain informationrelated to the specified application from the external device, andwherein the information includes address information to be used todownload the installation file from the server.
 11. A portablecommunication device comprising: first communication circuitry toestablish a first communication connection using a first communicationprotocol; second communication circuitry to establish a secondcommunication connection using a second communication protocol; atouchscreen display; and a processor configured to: obtain a firstinstallation file and a second installation file from a server via thefirst communication connection established using the first communicationcircuitry, the first installation file corresponding to a first versionof a specified application to be executed in the portable communicationdevice and the second installation file corresponding to a secondversion of the specified application to be executed in an externalelectronic device; install the first version of the specifiedapplication in the portable communication device using the firstinstallation file; and transmit the second installation file to theexternal electronic device via the second communication connectionestablished using the second communication circuitry, the secondinstallation file to be used to install the second version of thespecified application in the external electronic device when thespecified application is installed, using the second installation file,on the external electronic device, adding an identifier of the specifiedapplication to a list of identifiers of a plurality of applicationsinstalled on the portable communication device and the externalelectronic device; and displaying at least one identifier from the listof identifiers.
 12. The portable communication device of claim 11,wherein the processor is configured to: receive an indication from theexternal electronic device whether the application is installed on theexternal electronic device or not installed on the external electronicdevice.
 13. The portable communication device of claim 11, wherein theprocessor is configured to: generate authentication information to beused to establish the second communication connection the externalelectronic device.
 14. The portable communication device of claim 13,wherein the processor is configured to: receive another user input viathe touchscreen display; and perform authentication with respect to thesecond communication connection, based at least in part on adetermination that the authentication information corresponds to theanother user input.
 15. The portable communication device of claim 13,wherein the processor is configured to: receive another authenticationinformation generated at the external electronic device from theexternal electronic device; and perform authentication with respect tothe second communication connection, based at least in part on adetermination that the authentication information corresponds to theanother authentication information.
 16. The portable communicationdevice of claim 11, wherein the processor is configured to: receive, asat least part of the obtaining, management information related to thespecified application, the management information comprising a list ofone or more applications installed external to the portablecommunication device, the one or more application including the secondversion of the specified application.
 17. The portable communicationdevice of claim 11, wherein the first communication circuitry isconfigured to establish the first communication connection using anon-short range communication protocol as at least part of the firstcommunication protocol, and wherein the second communication circuitryis configured to establish the second communication connection using ashort range communication protocol as at least part of the secondcommunication protocol.
 18. The portable communication device of claim11, wherein the processor is configured to: perform the installing priorto the transmitting.
 19. The portable communication device of claim 11,wherein the processor is configured to: perform the transmitting basedat least in part on a determination that the portable communicationdevice is connected with the external electronic device via the secondcommunication connection.
 20. The portable communication device of claim11, wherein the processor is configured to: identify a smart watchdevice as at least part of the external electronic device.
 21. Theportable communication device of claim 11, wherein the processor isconfigured to: display, via the touchscreen display, the at least oneidentifier comprises displaying the list of identifiers of the pluralityof applications installed on the portable communication device and theexternal electronic device.
 22. The portable communication device ofclaim 11, wherein the processor is configured to: display a list ofidentifiers identifying another plurality of applications that areinstalled on the portable communication device and not installed on theexternal electronic device.